Our thoughts are at the root of serious kinds of emotional pain that humans endure. It’s really our thoughts that add the invisible salt to our open emotional wounds. In a sense, most of the emotional pain we feel is akin to phantom pain. It’s defined as pain that feels like it's coming from a body part that's no longer there. It’s actually a post-amputation phenomenon where the patient can still feel painful sensations from an amputated limb.

There’s something similar that happens to those who suffer from past emotional trauma. Even though the painful incident may have occurred years ago, many people can still muster up emotional pain through the simple act of thinking about it and focusing on it. If you find yourself suffering from this kind of phantom emotional pain, I suggest you begin to address and finally end this tormenting mental remnant. Talk it over with a good friend, someone from your local place of worship, or a therapist. Eliminating phantom emotional pain from your past will help you find peace of mind while allowing you to live in and deal more effectively with the present.